Bills HC credits CB Kaiir Elam’s breakout to new coaching hire

Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott feels as though new cornerbacks coach Jamile Addae has played a significant role in cornerback Kaiir Elam's offseason breakout.

Kyle Silagyi | Aug 4, 2024

Bills defensive back Kaiir Elam, left, and Kyron Brown put in the extra work with drills on tight coverage after practice. / Shawn Dowd/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK

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Kaiir Elam has been an oft-visited point of discussion amongst the Buffalo faithful over the past several years, and this has remained true throughout the Bills' 2024 training camp; recent discourse, however, has taken on a different tone, an air of confidence and optimism as opposed to one of grief.

The cornerback’s professional career got off to a challenging start after Buffalo traded up to select him in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft; he’s appeared in just 16 regular season games throughout his first two campaigns, notching 55 total tackles, four pass deflections, and two picks. His playing time has been limited due to circumstances both in and out of his control; he missed the vast majority of his sophomore campaign with a foot injury, but his aggression and knack for making untimely mistakes have prevented him from gaining the complete trust of the Bills’ coaching staff when available.

What perhaps makes Elam’s struggles so bothersome is that the makings of a potentially game-changing defensive back are there. He’s routinely made splash plays in opportune moments as a professional; he’s intercepted as many passes in four career postseason games as he has in 16 regular season games, and one of his regular season picks came against two-time NFL MVP Patrick Mahomes. His ball skills are impeccable, but signs of them have been too inconsistent.

He’s displayed improved consistency and general confidence throughout the team’s offseason workouts, however, first impressing at OTAs and carrying that improvement over into minicamp and training camp. He’s seen time with the first team and hasn’t looked particularly out of place at camp, again displaying his ball skills as he’s quickly reshaped the entire narrative around him. Just a few weeks ago, many had questions about his long-term ceiling and viability as the Buffalo’s next-man up at cornerback; it now looks as though he’s a reliable depth option with a realistic path to a future role.

Bills head coach Sean McDermott credits Elam’s early year-three breakout to both his work ethic and new cornerbacks coach Jamile Addae, who joined the organization in February.

Bills cornerback coach Jahmile Addae talks with players during day three of the Buffalo Bills training camp at St. John Fisher University in Pittsford, Friday, July 26, 2024. / Shawn Dowd/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK

“I think two things that come to mind, number one is he continues to work tirelessly to improve,” McDermott told reporters on Sunday. “Credit him for that. Two is the addition of Jamile. Starting with a clean slate and the belief in there that, with what [defensive coordinator] Bobby [Babich] and [safeties coach] Joe Danna, and now Jahmile have added to, I think those two things combined, at least early on here, have been what’s helped him.”

Addae comes to Buffalo from the collegiate ranks, joining the Bills after a two-year stint as the secondary coach at the University of Miami. He had previously served as a secondary position coach at Arizona, Minnesota, West Virginia, and Georgia, winning a National Championship with the Bulldogs in 2021. Buffalo hired Addae as its cornerbacks coach to partially supplement defensive backs coach John Butler, who departed One Bills Drive after a six-year stint with the club this offseason.

The new defensive position coach has been among those celebrating at camp when Elam makes a big play on the ball, whether it be an interception or pass breakup. A concerted effort to celebrate when a player makes an impact, per McDermott, goes a long way in rehabilitating lost confidence.

“Sometimes you have to give belief or give confidence before you get it,” McDermott said. “I’m not saying that’s the case in this situation or all situations, but I do believe that our environment and the environment that we’ve built, I would hope helps give confidence to each and every player so that they can become the best version of themselves when they’re in Buffalo.

“I think that’s happened in a lot of the players that we’ve had. Specific to Kaiir, it is important. He’s been through, for sure, let’s just say last year alone, that was a challenging and trying year. There is an element of, or degree of, re-instilling that belief and that confidence.”

Elam’s recent emergence—and McDermott’s partial accreditation of his breakout to a new defensive hire—bodes well for Buffalo on and off the field. Despite his recent strong play, Elam may struggle to see the field in 2024 due to the presence of the proven and trusted Rasul Douglas and Christian Benford; that said, Douglas is entering both his age-30 season and the final year of his current contract. Elam, who has at least one year remaining on his rookie deal after 2024 and will be just 24 next year, could be the team’s succession plan at the position.

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